Jet streamer for water vehicles



Jan. 18, 1966 c. F. SMITH 3,229,312

JET STREAMER FOR WATER VEHICLES Filed April 26, 1965 2 Sheets-Sheet lJan. 18, 1966 c. F. SMITH 3,229,312

JET STREAMER FOR WATER VEHICLES Filed April 26, 1965 2 Sheets-Sheet 2INVENTOR. 1 0? 5 112? United States Patent 3,229,312 JET STREAMER FORWATER VEHICLES Charles Frank Smith, RED. 3, Laconia, N.H. Filed Apr. 26,1965, Ser. No. 450,639 1 (Ilaim. (Cl. 9310) My invention is directedtoward attachments for water skis, boats and the like.

It is an object of my invention to provide a new and improved attachmentof the character indicated which provides a backward and upward spray ofwater when attached to the rear of a water ski or boat.

Another object is to provide a new and improved attachment of thecharacter indicated which can be easily attached to and removed from awater ski or boat.

Still another object is to provide a new and improved attachment of thecharacter indicated which can be manufactured easily and inexpensively.

All of the foregoing and still further objects and ad vantages of myinvention will now be explained with reference both to thisspecification and to the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of one form of my invention as attached toa water ski;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged detail view of the invention of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a side View of the ski of FIG. 1 in use;

FIG. 4 is a top view of a modification of my invention;

FIG. 5 is a cross section through 5-5 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is a cross section through 6-6 of FIG. 4;

FIG. 7 is an exploded view of a second modification of my invention;

FIG. 8 is a side view of a third modification of my invention;

FIG. 9 is a bottom view of the modification of FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the modification of FIG. 8.

Referring now to FIGS. 13 and 5, there is shown a flat thin elongatedwater ski 10 having an upward curved pointed front end 12 and a flathorizontal inward tapering rear end 14. Further there is shown a hollowmetal member 16 open at both ends, the bottom end 18 extendinghorizontally and forward, the top end 20 extending upward and rearward.End 18 has slotted sides 22 arranged to receive end 14 of the ski infriction tight engagement and having a bottom opening or throat 24extending horizontally below the flat bottom surface of the ski. Whenthe ski is pulled forward while resting on the surface of water 26,water flows through the throat and the body of the member and isdischarged from end 20 in the form of a jet spray. As can be seen fromthe drawings, the cross-sectional area of the discharge end 20 is largerthan the cross-sectional area of the inlet 24.

Alternatively as shown in FIGS. 4 and 6, sides 22 can have horizontallyextending flaps 30 having holes through which screws or nails 32 canextend upward and into the bottom surface of the ski to form a permanentattachment.

As a further alternative, end 18 and flaps 30 can have lip portions 32arranged to slide into upper and lower transverse grooves 34 in thewater ski.

Finally as shown in FIGS. 810, member 16 can be so shaped as to act bothas a tail fin and as a jet spray producer. To this end, the main body ofthe member is provided with a peripheral horizontal lip 50 having holes52 and hearing against the bottom surface of the ski adjacent the rearend, member 16 being secured thereto by screws 54 extending upwardthrough holes 52 into the bottom surface of the ski.

The bottom end 56 of the member slopes downward and away from the skiand is provided with a hinged door 58 which opens downward and away fromthe ski and can be held in open position by clip 60 as well as held in aclosed position by clip 62. The top end 64 of the member is always openand extends upward and away from the ski. When door 58 is closed, thedevice acts only as a tail fin; when door 58 is opened, a jet spray isproduced as previously described while the device still functions as atail fin.

While I have described my invention with particular reference to thedrawings, my protection is to be limited only by the terms of the claimwhich follows.

I claim:

In combination with a water ski which is thin, elongated and extendsessentially horizontally, said ski having a front end and a rear end, ajet producing hollow member open at both ends, one of said ends,extending essentially horizontally and adapted for engagement with therear end of the ski in such manner as to form an inlet throattherebelow, the other end referred to as the discharge end extendingupward and rearward behind the rear end of the ski whereby when the skiis dragged forward in water, water passes through said throat and isdischarged from the other end in the form of a jet spray, said inletthroat having a cross-sectional inlet area which is less than thecross-sectional area of the discharge end, and wherein said one memberend is provided with an upper lip and side bottom lips adapted forrespective engagement with upper and lower transverse grooves in the topand bottom surfaces of said ski.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,940,091 6/1960Fifer 93l0 3,040,345 6/1962 Green et al 9-310 3,089,157 5/1963 May 9310MILTON BUCHLER, Primary Examiner.

A, E. CORRIGAN, Assistant Examiner.

